PURPOSE: We aimed to assess the performance of computed tomography (CT) in localizing site of traumatic gastrointestinal tract (GIT) injury and determine the diagnostic value of CT signs in site localization. METHODS: CT scans of 97 patients with surgically proven GIT or mesenteric injuries were retrospectively reviewed by radiologists blinded to surgical findings. Diagnosis of either GIT or mesenteric injuries was made. In patients with GIT injuries, site of injury and presence of CT signs such as focal bowel wall hyperenhancement, hypoenhancement, wall discontinuity, wall thickening, extramural air, intramural air, perivisceral infiltration, and active vascular contrast leak were evaluated...

The knowledge related to the fate of probiotics in the complex environment of the intestinal microbiota in broilers is just beginning to be elucidated; however, it is not yet well understood. A good method to investigate the mechanisms by which probiotics mediate their effects is to mark probiotic bacteria and trace them. The aim of this research was to develop a new method to estimate in vivo fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC)-labelled Lactobacillus salivarius DSPV 001P counts during passage through the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) of broilers...

The skeletal myosin light chain kinase (skMLCK) catalyzed phosphorylation of the myosin regulatory light chain (RLC) is associated with potentiation of force, work, and power in rodent fast twitch muscle. The purpose of this study was to compare concentric responses of EDL from wild-type (WT) and skMLCK devoid (skMLCK(-/-)) muscles at a range of shortening speeds (0.05 to 0.70 V max) around that expected to produce maximal power (in vitro, 25 °C) both before (unpotentiated) and after (potentiated) a potentiating stimulus (PS)...

BACKGROUND: Although Antillean suspects in the Netherlands are often diagnosed as being intellectually impaired, there are no validated tests available Papiamento (the native language) for assessing intelligence or functional impairment. AIM: To validate the use of the GIT 2 (Groninger Intelligentie Test 2) and the Barkley Functioning Impairment Scale (BFIS) for Antillean defendants detained by the Judicial Service of the Caribbean Netherlands in Bonaire. METHOD: With the approval of the publishers, the GIT 2 and the BFIS were translated in Papiamento by two independent experts...

: The microbiota of the human gastrointestinal tract (GIT) may regularly be exposed to antibiotics, which are used to prevent and treat infectious diseases caused by bacteria and fungi. Bacterial communities of the gut retain a reservoir of antibiotic resistance (AR) genes, and antibiotic therapy thus positively selects for those microorganisms that harbor such genetic features, causing microbiota modulation. During the first months following birth, bifidobacteria represent one of the most dominant components of the human gut microbiota, though little is known about their AR gene complement (or resistome)...

The tests for diagnosing latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) are limited by poor predictive value for identifying people at highest risk for progression to active TB, and have varying sensitivity and specificity in different populations. The identification of a more robust signature for LTBI is important for TB prevention and elimination. A pilot study was conducted with samples from immigrants to the U.S. that were screened for LTBI by the three commercially approved tests: Tuberculin Skin Test (TST), QuantiFERON-TB Gold In-Tube (QFT-GIT), and T-SPOT...

The oral administration of protein therapeutics is hindered by the multitude of barriers confronted by these molecules along the gastrointestinal tract (i.e., acidic environment, proteolytic degradation, mucosal barrier, etc.). Their unique properties (e.g., high molecular weight, hydrophilicity, charge, etc.) and labile structure are mainly responsible for their instability in the harsh conditions along the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) and dictate the employment of alternative routes for their administration (e...

INTRODUCTION: Brush cytology is a rapid, cost-effective, and reliable tool to diagnose gastrointestinal tract (GIT) lesions in low-resource settings. Most of the studies on GIT brushings have focused on upper GI lesions. We have studied the diagnostic accuracy of brush cytology in the entire length of GIT and correlated the cytological diagnosis with histopathology. The aim of this study is to study diagnostic utility of brush cytology of GIT lesions in the context of correlation with biopsy and study the factors responsible for cytohistological discordance...

Background/Aims: Postoperative ileus (POI) is a common complication of abdominal surgery. DA-9701, an extract of Pharbitis Semen and Corydalis Tuber, is a new prokinetic agent that also alleviates visceral pain. The aim of this study was to investigate whether DA-9701 can ameliorate POI in rats. Methods: A total of 32 rats were divided into 4 groups: no surgery/no medication (NSNM), no surgery/medication (NSM), surgery/no medication (SNM), and surgery/medication (SM)...

During the development process of new drugs, identification of the drug-target interactions wins primary concerns. However, the chemical or biological experiments bear the limitation in coverage as well as the huge cost of both time and money. Based on drug similarity and target similarity, chemogenomic methods can be able to predict potential drug-target interactions (DTIs) on a large scale and have no luxurious need about target structures or ligand entries. Nevertheless, existing methods of drug chemical structure-based similarity and target sequence-based similarity may not reflect the cases that the drugs having variant structures interact with common targets and the targets having dissimilar sequences interact with same drugs...

Screening for active tuberculosis (TB) and latent TB infection (LTBI) is mandatory to the initiation of biological therapy in patients with rheumatic diseases. To determine the prevalence of LTBI in patients with rheumatoid arthritis before treatment with biological therapy (anti-TNF, abatacept, and tocilizumab) and the rate of TB conversion during treatment in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients, we evaluated the file of 275 patients with RA treated with biological agents. We considered patients with negative baseline TB screening (tuberculin skin test (TST); quantiferon TB gold in tube (QFT-GIT); chest x-ray) and with rescreening for a TB assay every year...

INTRODUCTION: Gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs) are the most common gastrointestinal tract (GIT) tumors of mesenchymal origin. GISTs tend to arise with a higher frequency in the stomach and the small intestine. GISTs that originate from outside of the GIT are defined as extra-gastrointestinal stromal tumors (EGISTs). Among them pancreatic EGISTs are very rare. CASE PRESENTATION: A 30 years old male patient presented with abdominal pain. Triphasic abdominal computed tomography scan with contrast revealed large well defined mass at the pancreatic tail, about 12×11...

The parallel artificial membrane permeability assay (PAMPA) is a high-throughput screening (HTS) technique developed to predict passive permeability through numerous different biological membranes, such as the gastrointestinal tract (GIT), the blood brain barrier (BBB), and the dermal layer. PAMPA is based on an artificial membrane, such as hexadecane (HDM), which separates two compartments (i.e., a donor and an acceptor compartment). In the present study, an HDM-PAMPA method was developed with human serum albumin (HSA) under iso-pH and gradient-pH conditions to predict the percentage of binding, dissociation/association constants (Kd and Ka, respectively) and dissociation/association kinetic rates (koff and kon, respectively) between a given drug and HSA...

BACKGROUND: Migrant farmworkers are among the highest-risk populations for latent TB infection (LTBI) in the United States with numerous barriers to healthcare access and increased vulnerability to infectious diseases. LTBI is usually diagnosed on the border using the tuberculin skin test (TST). QuantiFERON-TB Gold In-Tube (QFT-GIT) also measures immune response against specific Mycobacterium tuberculosis antigens. The objective of this study is to assess the comparability of TST and QFT-GIT to detect LTBI among migrant farmworkers on the border, as well as to examine the effects of various demographic and clinical factors on test positivity...

The aim of the present study was to assess the Tacrolimus (TL) loaded nanostructured lipid carrier for enhancement in solubilisation potential, pharmacokinetic parameters and lymphatic distribution profile. The solubilisation potential of TL-NLC was determined via application of dynamic lipolysis models, which simulate the GIT environment and the intestinal conditions. The in vitro lipolysis studies revealed significantly high solubilisation (***p<0.001) of TL-NLCs in aqueous phase (69.3%) in contrast to TL suspension (1...

This study tested the hypothesis that intermittent suckling (IS) with or without an older weaning age would improve post-weaning gastrointestinal tract (GIT) carbohydrate absorptive capacity in pigs while reducing post-weaning stress and aspects of the inflammatory response. Three weaning regimes using primiparous sows were compared: (1) conventional weaning (CW28) ( n = 22), where piglets were weaned conventionally at day 28; (2) IS28 ( n = 21), where IS started at day 21 until weaning at day 28; and (3) IS35 ( n = 21), where IS started at day 28 until weaning at day 35...

Diclofenac topical formulations are often preferred for drug administration to patients who experience serious GIT problems. Absorption of the drug through the skin, however, can be challenging due to the natural protective feature of the stratum corneum (SC). In this article, fluid gels prepared from gellan gum were explored as a topical drug delivery vehicle. Rheological analysis of the formulations showed that it was possible to produce a topical gel with a viscosity and the mechanical strength similar to that of the commercially available Voltaren(®) gel using 1% w/w of a 50:50 low acyl/high acyl (LA/HA) gellan blend...

OBJECTIVE: To assess the effectiveness of a proactive and integrated care programme to adjust the use of health resources by chronic complex patients (CCP) identified as potential high consumers according to a predictive model based on prior use and morbidity. METHODS: Randomized controlled clinical trial with three parallel groups of CCP: a blinded control group (GC), usual care; a partial intervention group (GIP) reported in the EMR; a total intervention group (GIT), also reported to primary care (PC)...